From the Wisdom Commentary series .
This volume offers a womanist and feminist analysis of the books of Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah, attending to translation and textual issues, use of power and agency, and constructions of gender and its significance for the real and metaphorical women in the texts. The unit on Nahum takes an unflinching look at God's role and rhetoric in the rape of Nineveh and considers implications for the women of Nineveh and Israel and for contemporary readers. Habakkuk is read employing a womanist stratagem, talking back to God. The section on Zephaniah explores the racialized history of interpreting "Cushi" in Zephaniah's genealogy and the figures of Daughter Zion/Jerusalem. The commentary also assesses these texts as scriptures of synagogue and church, their use and utility. A Jewish feminist reading and womanist hermeneutic accompanies each biblical book.?

About the Author
The Rev. Dr. Wilda (Wil) Gafney is an associate professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School where she prepares students undertaking a first master's degree in religion seeking to serve in a variety of social and ecclesial settings, and students seeking the PhD in Hebrew biblical studies. She is the recipient of the Catherine Saylor Hill Faculty Excellence award. Dr. Gafney is the author of Daughters of Miriam: Women Prophets in Ancient Israel and the forthcoming Womanist Midrash: A ReIntroduction to the Women of the Torah and the Throne. Barbara E. Reid, general editor of the Wisdom Commentary series, is a Dominican Sister of Grand Rapids, Michigan. She is the president of Catholic Theological Union and the first woman to hold the position. She has been a member of the CTU faculty since 1988 and also served as vice president and academic dean from 2009 to 2018. She holds a PhD in biblical studies from The Catholic University of America and was also president of the Catholic Biblical Association in 2014-2015. Carol J. Dempsey, OP is professor of biblical studies at the University of Portland, Oregon, with special expertise in Old Testament and prophets. She holds a PhD in biblical studies from The Catholic University of America, and has authored several books including Jeremiah: Preacher of Grace, Poet of Truth (Liturgical Press, 2007) and Reading the Bible, Transforming Conflict.

Reviews
"Dr. Gafney uses her wide-ranging exegetical skills to make these biblical texts come alive in a new way. Consequently, the questions addressed in these books resonate with our own questions today, making this work indispensable to those who study, teach, or proclaim a word of hope from these ancient texts."Cheryl B. Anderson, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary
"This volume belongs on the shelf of anyone who teaches or preaches these texts, for it provides a well-written example of how to read ancient prophets with respect for the past and an eye to the future."Interpretation
"The interaction between historical context and theological reflection supplies one of the many strengths of this volume. Writing during the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, she reflects on comparable tendencies in these texts (such as Nahum) and in modern North American society to disregard the lives of entire communities. These theological reflections make this volume particularly beneficial for the professors, preachers, and religious practitioners who approach these texts to inform modern theological reflections in conversation with the realities of the marginalized in North American Society and around the world."Catholic Books Review



Book Information
ISBN 9780814681626
Author Wilda C. M. Gafney
Format Hardback
Page Count 264
Imprint Liturgical Press
Publisher Liturgical Press
Weight(grams) 547g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 22mm